Allyson Whipple

Category: Lists

  • The Best of It: Making Do Edition

    Breakfast tacos made with leftover relleno filling
    1. John gave me a solid home haircut.
    2. When leftovers become breakfast tacos.
    3. Being in a walkable neighborhood.
    4. John making pickles for the coming week.
    5. Having Buc’ee’s ground coffee in the pantry.

  • The Best of It: 36th Birthday Edition

    Birthday cannoli with pistachios and Luxardo cherries
    1. Two kinds of chile relleno for dinner tonight, made from scratch.
    2. The fanciest cannoli I’ve ever eaten, made from scratch.
    3. Being able to meet with the Austin Haiku Group via Zoom.
    4. A partner who will do his darnedest to make this a special day even under quarantine.
    5. Officially releasing my new yoga nidra EP on my website and major streaming services.

  • The Best of It: Creative Quarantine Edition

    Manuscript pages
    1. I have a new chapbook manuscript.
    2. I sent it to a chapbook contest.
    3. Tomorrow I’m hosting the Austin Haiku Group via Zoom, and am grateful we have a chance to get together virtually.
    4. I was asked to judge a contest in the Austin Poetry Society annual awards.
    5. I have three projects-in-progress right now, and I am enjoying working on all of them.

  • The Best of It: Music and Teaching Edition

    My beer stein being used for coffee
    1. Not setting my alarm clock.
    2. Being able to work on a nice dinner in stages throughout the day.
    3. Waking up to find a surprise disco playlist in my Spotify account.
    4. The playlist John has curated for his History of the Blues/Global Power of the Funk course at Texas State this semester.
    5. The way that the current situation has allowed my students and me to be more open with each other.

  • The Best of It: Working From Home Indefinitely Edition

    Chile Colorado and red rice from Friday night
    1. Wearing yoga pants every day of the week.
    2. Not having to pack my lunch.
    3. That I had the foresight to bring my work laptop home when I left for spring break, even though school hadn’t officially been closed yet.
    4. That I actually have been using my work laptop for work rather than just using my personal machine for everything.
    5. That I listened to my instincts about what I needed to do for my class, rather than defaulting to all the pedagogical noise, and I can tell that I made the right call.

  • The Best of It: Kitchen Organization Edition

    Everyday use items
    Pots and pans in the style of Julia Child
    Common cookware
    1. Yesterday, John helped me put up a peg board so I could hang my pots and pans. I love how it looks, and I am thrilled with how this has opened up cabinet space.
    2. John also reorganized my shelves to make common dishes and cookware easily accessible. I’m really grateful for his sense of design.
    3. We got takeout from our favorite Chinese place, and it felt so decadent.
    4. I got to lead a yoga nidra practice via Zoom as part of the Austin Wellness Collaborative Corona Series.
    5. Every episode of Brooklyn 99 fills me with delight.

  • The Best of It: Hearth and Home Edition

    Turmeric-coconut curry with pork from the March Bon Appetit
    1. This morning I woke up without sinus congestion for the first time in I don’t know how long.
    2. Chris Morocco’s turmeric-coconut curry with pork recipe is both easy and amazing. John and I ate nearly the entire thing.
    3. My weighted blanket arrived this morning, well ahead of schedule. I can’t wait to sleep under it tonight.
    4. The Le Creuset French press is wonderful. Ceramic definitely keeps coffee warmer longer.
    5. Adopting a pretty new house plant that I found left on the curb during last night’s walk.

  • Goodbye, 2015

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    Out at Fort McKavett in October

    Greetings from rural Illinois! I’m out here enjoying winter break, organizing poetry files, and writing haibun. Next week, I’ll be back to the warm weather, kicking off 2016 with a road trip through Mexico.

    I’ve been too busy to blog this semester. I’ve even neglected my poor email newsletter. But I thought I’d pop in for a little year in review.

    2015 wasn’t without difficulty, but it was much better than 2014. I’ve had numerous friends tell me your 30s are your best decade, and this year, that’s proved to be true.

    This year, I successfully co-edited the 2016 Texas Poetry Calendar with Wade Martin, and helped host readings for the calendar around Texas. (I also had my license plate stolen at the reading in Houston, which was not fun.) I’m grateful I had the opportunity to be a part of Dos Gatos press and help continue the tradition of this great publication. Wade and I are already reading for 2017 (the deadline is January 15th!) so send along your poems!

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    At the Blue Willow Bookshop reading for TPC

    I also got to be a featured reader at the Austin International Poetry Festival, and met Nikki Giovanni on my birthday! 31 goes down in the record books as the best birthday ever.

    I was fortunate enough to get more teaching work at ACC, allowing me to make education the focus of my career.

    I got to attend a friend’s book launch in Chicago. I finished a new chapbook manuscript. I got to teach more poetry workshops.

    Last but not least, I began an MFA program this fall. The first semester is over and done, and I’m so happy to be there. I’m looking forward to school starting again soon!

    May the last day of 2015 be a happy one. Here’s to 2016!

  • Some quick updates

    Life has been a whirlwind lately. There are blog posts I’ve wanted to write, but haven’t made time. However, I have some announcements that I want to dash off before turning in for the night.

    1. Registration for the Submission Mission 2014 workshop is now open! For details and a link to the registration form, check out the Workshops page.

    2. After over a year of revision, I’m ready to start sending out my next manuscript! I finished the first draft of Curved Tongue, Forked Road a few days after Thanksgiving in 2012. After three beta readers, lots of cuts and additions, and hours spent arranging poems, I have a manuscript I’m excited to share.

    3. I’m not on the planning committee of Flor de Nopal, but I believe it’s the best literary festival that Austin has to offer. This year, they’re underfunded. If your bank account has room to spare, please consider making a donation. It’s tax deductible, and filing season is just around the corner!

    4. This weekend I’m reading at the Dos Gatos Press Texas Poetry Calendar reading, held at BookPeople on Saturday the 7th. The reading starts at 4. I’m also reading at the Austin Writergrrls Book Festival, held at BookWoman on Sunday the 8th, also starting at 4. Both events are free and open to the public.

    I think that wraps it up for now. Hopefully I’ll have time for longer updates in the new year!

  • Weekend Reading

    A lot of worthwhile stuff appeared online this week. (I’m stick in the thick of A Dance With Dragons, so new books haven’t crossed my radar.)

    Kenyon drama professor Thomas Turgeon died this week from ALS. I never took a class with him (honestly, I never even met him), but I did live in his house the summer after graduation, with Jon and two close friends. It remains one of the best summers of my life, and I’m grateful that the Turgeons allowed us to house-sit while they traveled.

    A few years ago, my friend Rick wrote an essay about his love of Linux. I’m not full-time Linux anymore, but I still have a healthy appreciation for open-source.

    “This Is What Every Heart Must Become” by Hannah Stephenson. Tiny poems accomplish big feelings.

    “‘Accessing a Limitless Vein of Words’: Ruth Williams Interviews Jeongrye Choi.” Wonderful discussion about what it means to be a poet and the responsibility of writing.

    San Antonio is preparing to launch a bookless library.

    Via my friend Colleen: “13 unique punctuation marks you never knew existed.” I love the exclamation comma and question comma. And I got Jon an interrobang tattoo for his birthday this year.

    Punctuation greatness, thanks to Brandi at Atomic Tattoo on Burnet.
    Punctuation greatness, thanks to Brandi at Atomic Tattoo on Burnet.